Ramblings of an Insomniac

It's 3a.m. and here I am sitting in front of the keyboard again. My best ideas come to me when my brain should be sleeping. I didn't understand how someone couldn't sleep and why it took medication for one to quiet their mind. Now that I occasionally experience it I wonder how those same people have dealt with it for as long as they have.

More people suffer from insomnia than we realize. Studies have shown that at least half of the population in the United States suffers from one form or another of insomnia. Insomnia doesn't just mean that you can't sleep. Some people have difficulty falling asleep, others wake up not feeling refreshed or like they haven't gotten the rest their body needed, some have trouble staying asleep and others wake up early and can't go back to sleep. Its important to know that insomnia is a symptom not a diagnosis.

The causes of insomnia can be caused by the following factors:

-Psychological and mental disorders such as stress, depression and anxiety.

-Physical illnesses or complaints such as an imbalance in hormone levels. This primarily affects women around the time of their menstrual cycle or just before menopause.

-Stimulants like street drugs, caffeine and certain medications.

There are three main types of insomnia that people complain of most.

Transient Insomnia
This type of insomnia generally lasts less than four weeks and is an inability to sleep usually due to environmental factors such as stress or anxiety. Once the environmental factors are removed the symptoms of insomnia usually subside.

Chronic Insomnia
This is the most common type of insomnia. A person is unable to sleep more nights than not for more than six months. "Physical ailments - such as disorders of breathing or abnormal muscle activity - are often the cause of sleep disruption and may account for a large number of self-diagnosed cases of insomnia. (Association of Sleep Disorders Center). This type of insomnia can be treated successfully with medication.

Short-Term Insomnia
Short-term insomnia usually only lasts from four weeks to six months and is caused by stress, psychiatric disorders or other medical disorders. Again once the stresses are removed the symptoms will subside on their own.

Insomnia affects several aspects of ones daily life. A lot of people that suffer from it complain about their interpersonal relationships being poor because they are irritable from not sleeping and others don't want to be around them. They also say that their performance at work falls short of certain expectations. Insomnia can be treated with and without medication and does not have to dictate ones life.